


Brothers In Spirit

by DixieDale



Category: Garrison's Gorillas
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-08-01
Updated: 2018-08-01
Packaged: 2019-06-19 19:49:50
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 4,157
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/15517314
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/DixieDale/pseuds/DixieDale
Summary: In 'The Best Gifts of All', Goniff wanted to get something special for the guys as a Christmas gift, and something EXTRA special for Chief, who'd saved his life and got all bunged up doing it.  Just what happened to land them in that mess in the first place?  It went something like this . . .War years, after 'Chief and the Wildling' and 'Father Knows Best', before 'The Best Gifts of All'.





	Brothers In Spirit

Lieutenant Craig Garrison read over the mission plan once again, studied the street map and swore to himself. Too many moving parts, too many places to be; he was going to have to split the team yet again, and that only added to the danger of the mission, not like it wasn't already risky enough!

The plans were in General Karlman's safe at his residence, since the man worked out of an office there, not in the official headquarters building on the other side of the city. The safe was a special one, requiring a key AND a combination, so it wasn't like Casino could just crack the damned thing; they had to have the key unless they were going to blow it and there were just too many people in and around the place for something loud like that. The master key to the house was important, too; having it would save Casino considerable time on the main doors as well as the office door, but that key to the safe was essential, and it was kept by the General's Aide at all times, both on one key ring he always carried in his vest watch pocket. He left the building only for his evening meal, even slept on the premises. According to the Underground, the man seemed to be a workaholic, and that evening meal was his one self-indulgence. He didn't drink, he didn't seem to have any personal frailties that they might use against him, wasn't one to take up with a friendly lady, wasn't one to be tempted into a card game - just that one solitary walk to the restaurant three blocks over, his leisurely and solitary meal, and then the walk back. It didn't help that the General rarely left his house anymore, not since he'd been banged up in a car accident and ended up in a wheelchair.

They had one chance that Garrison could see. There was a rather large gathering of the regional officials and well-to-do's and the regional brass and the General had already accepted the invitation. Both he and his mistress were expected to attend. The problem would be in keeping the two of them there for the required amount of time, out of the way, the General not having a lot of stamina yet, and even less patience for having to use his limited energy for political mingling. That would be Actor and Garrison's job, to somehow capture his attention enough to get him to linger for the amount of time necessary. The initial plan was for Garrison to focus on the General, Actor on the striking brunette; hopefully they would both be successful.

First, though, they had to get that key ring from the General's Aide, and on his way TO the restaurant, buying Casino time with the safe. Normally that wouldn't be a problem; their resident pickpocket had the slickest set of sticky fingers even Actor had ever seen.

But Goniff was moving slower than usual, not yet recovered from that set of cracked ribs he'd gotten on the mission prior. He hadn't complained about going on this new mission, hadn't said a word about maybe Garrison borrowing one of the slight-of-hand guys from one of the other teams, hadn't said much at all except a quiet, "alright, w'at's it that I gotta do, Warden?", all the while avoiding meeting Garrison's eyes.

That alone told Garrison the wiry Englishman just wasn't up to par yet, no matter the stern lecture Dr AJ Riley had issued along with the warning, "you push him out of an airplane, those cracked ribs are going to give way, Lieutenant!" With Goniff, sometimes you had to think backwards - if he was griping about getting back to full duty after an injury, then he was pretty much good to go; if he went quiet and just tightened his jaw and plowed ahead, it was too soon - it'd taken Garrison awhile to figure that out, and sometimes he had to step back and force himself to remember before it caused a problem, but this time, he KNEW it was too soon.

But no matter how much Garrison would have preferred to leave their pickpocket behind at the Mansion to continue healing, they needed his sticky fingers to get the keys from the General's aide, and there was no one available from the other teams with the same skill as what rested in those talented hands. 

Luckily they went in by sub, not having to parachute in; still, seeing the stiff way Goniff was holding himself and moving, the lack of horseplay or usual cocky interaction they'd come to expect, Garrison knew he couldn't ask much more from their pickpocket than the basics, and planned the mission so that, after the snitching of that key ring and handing it over to Casino, Goniff would be free to head back to the rendezvous point and wait for the others. Garrison didn't like sending him off alone, anymore than he liked Casino being alone, AND Chief; he worried about that. If something went wrong . . . 

The Lieutenant didn't like separating the team any more than they did, but more and more it was becoming necessary with the increased complexity of the missions they were being given. Even Chief, acting as driver for Garrison and Actor, had to stay back, not stick close by in case those two ran into trouble like he usually would have done, since they weren't letting any vehicles stay anywhere near the building where the rather elegant event was taking place.

Chief dropped them off at that fancy red canvas overhang, watched them walk in, and after checking his watch to know when to pick them up again, headed out in response to the motioning of the armed guards. He went over it all in his head. {"The Warden and Actor should keep that General occupied so he won't get back too early and walk in on Casino opening that safe in his library. Goniff shoulda already done his bit, be on his way to pass the stuff off to Casino outside the General's place, then head back to the rendezvous point. Got plenty of time to kill, but dont wanna be sitting in the car that long; some patrol comes along and questions me, I'm in deep shit!"}.

None of them except for Garrison and Actor spoke German or French well enough to get by without betraying themselves. He decided since he needed to keep moving, he'd head in the direction of where Goniff and Casino were working, just in case, circle back when it got closer to pick-up time. He just had a feeling about this job, and it wasn't a good one.

Meanwhile, Goniff had just come a cropper, big time, and surprisingly, it hadn't happened while he was trying to do a little 'shopping', like the guys were always claiming it would. No, it was all just one of those things that happen, something that maybe he could have avoided if there had been more room, if he wasn't stiff and sore from those ribs, or if there had been fewer people to dodge around, or if whoever had spilled that dollop of grease on the floorboards of that outdoor cafe had done something about it instead of just letting it stay there to catch him off guard, or any combination of other things. Swearing to himself as he ran, dodging the grasping hands, ducking into that dark alley, he could only hope the rest of the team was having better luck at their part of the mission.

Oh, he'd COMPLETED his part of the mission, alright; nabbed that key ring off that rather sour looking individual Garrison had pointed out to him slick as a wink, got the goods handed off to Casino just like he was supposed to. He'd COMPLETED his part, started on his way to the rendezvous point, just like clockwork. It was just that now he wasn't any too sure of his SURVIVING to get there, not sure he should even head there, not with that pair on his heels.

The last thing he intended to do was to bring the enemy down on the rest of the guys. Slipping in that thick grease, losing his balance and bumping those two German officers like that, yeah, he'd screwed up and he just might not live to regret it. They'd started jabbering at him, and while he could make out some of the words, he couldn't really answer; even the few words he knew in German, even a quick "pardon" in his best efforts at a French accent came out with a totally recognizable English twist.

He'd tried for the 'total simpleton' look, and an apologetic dip of his head, and a quick exit, but after a fast look at each other, the two had rapidly started after him, though whether it was because they'd spotted him as a foreigner or whether they were just pissed at being bumped he didn't know. Didn't know if it mattered much, even; from the look on their faces, they weren't looking to stand him to a drink!

Even now he was feeling the effects of that grease on his boot sole and rim, making him slip when he tried to take a corner too quickly; unfortunately, there wasn't time to stop and try to clean it off, and he sure couldn't get anywhere without the boots. For some reason, his mind flashed back to that almost manic clowning he and Casino had gotten into on that boat once they were out of gunshot range from the shore, him perched in the rigging, Casino yelling at him from below - Casino grabbing and pulling off one of Goniff's boots, tossing it away, Goniff admittedly showing absolutely no common sense by yanking off and tossing the other one after it. The Warden had been less than impressed when Goniff descended from the rigging back onto the deck, clad only in those heavy socks, and Goniff had been more than a little footsore by the time he was able to come up with another pair of boots that halfway fit. No, he wouldn't be yanking these boots off, and besides, that would take almost as much time as trying to wipe off that heavy grease! He didn't think he had that much time, feeling the pinch and clutch of those cracked ribs when he tried to breathe.

 

It was only a few blocks to where Casino was doing his part, where Goniff would have bumped into that Aide to grab the goods. Chief wheeled the car into a dark spot and got out, pausing to decide whether to stick close to the General's home or head on foot toward the rendezvous point.

He found himself moving automatically in the direction Goniff would have gone, without hesitation. Was it what the team, the Warden, expected of him, keeping a special lookout for Goniff? Well, they all looked out for each other, not just Goniff, so that wasn't it. Was it what Meghada expected of him? Well, she'd never asked it of him either. No, it was more what his blood, his heritage expected of him.

That evening after he'd spotted the fox at Meghada's place, him and all the guys at the Cottage, the Warden included, drinking and talking, eventually falling asleep in their chairs, he'd heard her call Goniff that, "my wildling", with a gentle smile, though in a low whisper that only Chief had been awake to hear, and it made sense somehow. She'd mentioned before that, when Goniff first appeared in her garden, she'd wondered if that wasn't what he was, that or one of what she called 'the Fair Folk'.

Well, in Chief's own culture, the wildlings, they were to be cherished, protected as best they could be. And Goniff, whatever else he was or wasn't, was one he was drawn to protect, even more than he was drawn to protect the others, even the Warden. It wasn't that the slight Englishman was helpless or weak or stupid, he wasn't; he knew his job and pulled his weight just like they all did. Still, the instinct was there, strong and determined and not to be denied. That was what had drawn him away from the perimeter of the rendezvous point, the feeling, the knowing that something had gone wrong.

The sound of running footsteps, ragged breathing came from the alley to his left, and he headed off in that direction, keeping deep in the shadows. It wasn't just the one set of footsteps he'd heard, there were others coming up behind those, and he knew he'd been right about there being trouble coming.

 

Goniff had paused to catch his breath, to try and get his bearings, when he heard the quiet footstep and froze. A hushed, "who's after you?" had him letting out his held breath in a rush when he recognized Chief's voice.

"Two pissed off German officers, didn't want to lead them back, so ducked through the alleys to try and lose them, but got all turned around, Chiefy," he managed with a deep swallow.

"Get the goods to Casino?"

"Yeah, no problem there, this all 'appened after," and Chief nodded in the darkness, and pulled Goniff after him at a trot. They'd gotten to the end of the alleyway when the two chasing Goniff caught up with them, and the harsh snap of words they had no difficulty in understanding had them slowly raising their hands and backing up to the wall.

{"Great! Now I got Chiefy caught too!"} Goniff cursed silently to himself. The two officers moved closer and Goniff felt Chief's shoulder tense against his, waiting to make his move. They separated quietly, giving each other room. 

One of the officers held back, the gun never wavering from the two backed against the wall, while the other moved closer, close enough they could see his face in the dim light from the street. Once Chief could see the closer man was focused on Goniff, while the one with the gun focused primarily on HIM, he whispered, "toward me", hoping Goniff understood what he was saying; he got just a quick flash of those blue eyes in return before Goniff turned back to face the officer coming directly towards him.

The man had a decidedly unpleasant look on his face, albeit wearing a smile, and was careful not to get between Chief and that gun. There was another long guttural sentence, one that left both Goniff and Chief without a clue, but the hard backhand to Goniff's face was unmistakable, as was the fierce followup to the ribs. Goniff was pretty sure those cracked ribs might have just given way entirely, and despite himself, he let out a groan and felt himself start to sag. When Chief started to move, the other officer made a cautionary movement with the gun, and Chief held back.

Then the moment he'd been waiting for, Goniff recovered and straightened, snarled something at the one who'd hit him, twice now, and lurched sideways toward Chief, causing his assailant to move into the path of that gun, and Chief made his own move. His knife was out and rammed into the German's heart, and he pushed the now slumping body back toward the man with the gun. The man waivered, not wanting to hit his partner, then made up his mind and moved to fire at Goniff.

Goniff saw the gun jerk towards him, a crack of gunfire broke the silence of the night, and in his mind he could already feel the impact of the bullet headed his way. Then Chief was on top of the man, and one quick flash of his knife and it was over. Goniff was still trying to figure out how he wasn't dead, when he realized Chief was still on all fours, leaning over the body.

"Chiefy?" he whispered, and the slow, too slow turn of his teammate's head toward him brought him forward in a rush. He reached Chief's side as the younger man started to slump.

"Coo, Chiefy! 'E was aiming at me! W'at the ruddy 'ell???" and the quick not-quite-a-smile twitched at Chief's lips, had Goniff swearing under his breath again. He started to move that cursing to the open air before he remembered where they were. Later, he told himself, later, once they were safe, he'd tell Chiefy NOT to do that again, not put himself between Goniff and a bullet, that that was just ruddy stupid! Of course, Goniff had done the same with other members of the team, more than once, would probably do it again if he lived that long, but that was different! He wouldn't have been able to explain that in words, why it was different, not to anyone, but it just WAS.

"Alright, Chiefy, just 'ow do we get back to the others?" helping his wavering teammate to his feet. He nodded at the low words, the gesture of a direction, and arm around Chief's waist, headed them off toward the rendezvous point. They were moving slow, both out of stealth and because neither of them were in pristine shape; so slow, that Casino made it back to the meeting place before them.

It was Casino that had to locate the car and dash back to pick up Garrison and Actor, hoping like hell no one realized it was a different guy than had let them off. He made it back just as Garrison and Actor came out that front door, glided in and waited til they were safely in the car and drove away. Garrison and Actor noted the change of plan, and Garrison winced in worried anticipation, "want to tell me what happened?" Not that Casino knew much of anything, there just hadn't been time for idle chit chat with Goniff or Chief, just a quick description of where the car was and what had to be done and by when.

"Goniff was patchin him up when I left, but the little Limey was green around the gills, and movin and breathin even worse than before. Don't know how fast either of them are gonna be movin on the way out, Warden." They were all on guard now, wondering just what they'd find when they reached the meeting place.

 

Goniff was chattering nervously while he worked on Chief's injuries. "One a these days we're gonna 'ave to come up with a meeting spot that aint wet and muddy and cold, Chiefy! Getting ruddy tired of the poor accommodations, ya know?"

Chief was conscious, wincing as Goniff packed the shoulder wound and bandaged it tightly; they each carried a small med kit, nothing elaborate, but enough to hopefully get by in an emergency. Chief licked his dry lips, raising his dark eyes to meet those hazy blue ones, letting one of his rare smiles come to his face, "yeah, next time we should let Actor make our reservations stead of the Warden. You know the Warden, always watchin the pennies."

Goniff flickered a grin at that, "room service, silk sheets, 'ot and cold running maids to turn down the covers? Yeah, that'd be Actor's style." 

Then he frowned, "Chiefy . . . ".

But he didn't know how to say what he wanted to say. 'Thanks' seemed too little, and besides he'd already said that on the trip back, and now that he'd had a little time to calm down, scolding the man for sticking his neck out for him seemed more than a little ungrateful. And that smile, the unexpected warmth in Chiefy's eyes worried him, just a little. Well, maybe a lot.

For someone who wanted a nice simple, uncomplicated life, here he was, barrelling right along in the other direction, just like he had no sense at all. Between Sing-Sing and the mess with 'King' Marston there, then this whole soldier-boy act he'd gotten involved in, well that would have been enough to remove his life from the 'uncomplicated' category. Add in his coming to care, really care about the other guys and wanting to keep them safe, then Meghada turning his whole life upside down, you'd have thought that was more than enough.

But no, Meghada's father had to see too deep, knew things he shouldn't have been able to know about feelings Goniff was trying real hard to pretend didn't exist, acted like it was no big deal, talking about Goniff someday becoming 'Eileamh a Curadh' to Garrison's 'Warrior', along with being 'Eileamh a Dragan' to Meghada's Dragon. He was still trying to figure all that out. But that look in Chiefy's eyes, oh ruddy 'ell!

Goniff had a disturbing image flash through his mind, an image straight out of a movie they'd all seen recently - him in long robes like Alphonse wore, turban on his head, seated on a throne, surrounded by bodies clad in colorful clothes, all with far too familiar faces. Luckily, as he surveyed his harem, the vision of a nose-in-the-air Actor in one of those filmy harem-girl costumes, lecturing them all on something or other that none of them cared about anyway, that broke the spell, though it left him shuddering in truly appalled reaction, though noting that burgundy really WAS Actor's best color.

{"Ruddy 'ell!!!"} The look of pure panic on his face almost pulled an involuntary laugh from his usually solemn team mate. 

It took a slow-growing, way too knowing grin from Chief, and the words, "no, aint like that, Goniff. We're brothers-in-spirit, just that, nothing more. Well, maybe a little more, but not like what you're worried about. Think you have enough complications going on without that."

And Goniff looked, searching those dark eyes for truth, and let out a deep sigh of relief. "Ruddy 'ell, Chiefy, you've got that right! Yer right, 'brothers-in-spirit' about says it. I like that! Aint that I'm not grateful for the way things are, you know that! Still, never intended any of this, you know??! Don't know 'ow to 'andle things as it is!!! Sure as 'ell aint the simple, uncomplicated life I always aimed for!"

And the ever widening grin on Chief's face told him his brother-in-spirit understood, empathized, probably was even finding this all more than a little amusing.

"Yeah, I know. You're just getting used to the Meghada thing; now, with the Warden vibe going on? No, I aint gonna add to that. Sides, already got . . . Well, I aint gonna add to that."

Goniff swallowed hard, not daring to look into those dark eyes again; he wasn't about to respond to that whole 'Warden vibe' comment; he wasn't admitting anything to himself - he sure as hell wasn't going to admit anything to Chiefy, though from the sound of it, he didn't have to. Just like Meghada's father, it seemed Chiefy just saw too damned much!!!

And Goniff just had to wonder at that little 'already got' fragment, but then they heard that whistled signal that told them the others had arrived and that put an end to the conversation. 

"Chief, Goniff?" the quick, anxious inquiry came from Garrison, and Actor hurried to check their injuries, Casino standing guard at the doorway.

"Got 'im bandaged up, Warden, but I figure we left a 'ell of a trail 'ere; can't stick around til daylight, that's for ruddy sure!" 

Chief nodded his agreement, "yeah, anyone spots that blood, could track in either direction, here or back to those two bodies we left in the alley. And Warden, Goniff finished those ribs off, I think," getting an exasperated look from the Englishmen, and a peevish, "no call to go telling 'im that, Chiefy; I'm fine!"

From the doorway, Casino snickered, "now you're starting to sound like the Warden, ya damned fool Limey! Yeah, yer fine, anyone could see that!" seeing how the Englishman was sitting, slightly hunched, pale green slowly replacing the oddly pink flush on that normally pale face.

Actor left Chief, moved to Goniff's side and confirmed, "yes, they're broken now, most certainly. We'll have to take it slower with the pair of them, Craig." And Garrison's green eyes moved from Chief to Goniff, taking in all he could see, what he'd been told, and nodded.

"We'll take it as easy as we can, but we've got to be at the pick-up point by the deadline. Come on, let's get started. Casino, keep a look out," and he went to carefully help Goniff to his feet while Actor braced Chief and got him upright. Together they made it to the car, sticking with it to the next town before they ditched it for something quite different, something less recognizable. Brothers-in-spirit - the term, first coined by either Meghada or Chief, they couldn't remember which. Whichever, it fit. They'd gone out together, fought the enemy together, and were now headed home together. For today, that was enough.


End file.
